Moving-picture camera



Dec. 11926.; 1,609,819

L. J. R. HOLST MOVING PICTURE CAMERA Filed Sept. 25, 1920 3 Sheets-Sheet1 INVENTOR. WITNESS I: fl t jmj mg ATTORNEY Dec. 7, 1926.

1,609,819 L. J. R. HOLST MOVING PI CTURE CAMERA Filed Sept. 25, 1920 3Sheets-Sheet 2 zgz.

Dec. 7, 1926. I 1,609,819

- L.J.R.HOLST MOVING PICTURE CAMERA Filed Sept. 25, 1920 5 Sheets-Sheet5 i ,/E1:l 5

- flj Y 5 gm Patented Dec. 7, 1926 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

LODEWYK J. B. HOLST, O1 PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOB TO HIMSELFAND CLARENCE WOLF, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

MOVING-PICTURE CAMERA.

Application filed September 25, 1920. Serial No. 412,840.

The purpose of this invention is to produce negatlves on the usual filmstrips of moving picture cameras, so that prints thereof when projectedby a good projector will produce-in the mind of the observer a strongand compelling suggestion of stereoscopic depth, without the panoramicswaying of the image from left to right and right to left, which isinherent in all such pictures made by the various meanshithertodisclosed.

- Since the perception of distance is produced in the mind by thecombining of views of the same objects simultaneously observed from twoview points, located in the same horizontal plane at a distance apartequal to the distance of the centers of the eyes, views produced fromone single viewpoint cannot awaken in the mind the sensation of depth solong as they are viewed with both eyes. Observation of such viewsthrough one eye only may however under suitable conditions ofperspective result in a strong sensation of depth being created in F themind. Life long experience in viewing all objects with both eyes hastrained the mind to recognize as flat all views of which each eyeproduces exactly the same image.

This condition being the case when observing with two eyes movingpicture scenes as pro ected on the screen, the sensation of depth is notawakened, however favorable the effect of perspective may be, and inorder to create the sensation of depth notwithstanding the observationof the same image by each eye, it is necessary to give to the view suchexaggerated qualities of perspective that the observer actually seesmore of each object depicted than his normal visual experience causeshim to expect to see.

This condition can be. produced, when making use of the faculty of theretina to retain an image for an appreciable time after actualobservation. This makes it possible to produce in what appears to besimultaneous observation, two or more views of the same objects as seenfrom horizontally shifting view points. The perspective of such viewsblends in the mind as if it were the perspective created by the objectsthemselvesand not by imagesthereof, and consequently the sensation ofdistance. and depth is awakened thesame asif the observer looked at theobjects directly.

The 'occular observations produce sharp impressions of objects directlyin the line of sight, and the sharpness of delineation gradually fadesin all directions, up to the limits of the field of iew. This fading isso gradual that we fail to observe'that the field changes when thecenter of'observation is changed from one point'to another. In fact Weare not aware that our field of View is limited, since it always centerson the object observed. Pictures have, however, a limited field of view,and the observation of a picture immediately makes the observeraware ofthese limits. If thus, by shifting of the view point the actual View ischanged, the lnnits change to the same extent from right to left or viceversa, as the view point was changed. Since the change takes place in ahorizontal plane, the upper" and lower marglns are not affected. It isthus plain that the use of any means whatsoever whereby the viewpointsof successive images are changed will automatically cause a certainamount of panoramic shifting of the image.

.In connection with street and landscape scenes frequently seen intravel pictures, this panoramiceffect is by no means objectionable, infact it is frequently intentional and always awakens the most compellingsensation of depth, enhancing the beauty of such views, but when asimilar panoramic effect, even in lesser degree is present when thesetting should be at rest, any noticeable trace of panoramic shiftingbecomes exceedingly objectionable and detracts by its mere presonce fromthe illusion of depth which would be obtained without it.

My present invention overcomes this defect thus far inherent in movingpictures with shifting viewpoints and consists in a moving picturecamera especially devised to tfake pictures free from the above noteddeects.

My invention will be best understood as described in connection with thedrawings in which- Figure 1 is a front view of a camera embodying theleading features of my mechanical invention shown with the front of thecamera removed and the top cut away.

Figure 2 is a plan view.

Figure 3 is a vertical elevation on line 31-3 of Fig. 1.

Figure 4 is a plan view of the feed shifting device shown in Figs. 1 and3.

Figure 5 is .a .detaiL.

Figure 6 is a diagrammatic view showing a tendency to shift the marginallimits of successive pictures taken with the camera of Figs. 1, 2 and 4.

Figure 7 is a similar diagrammatic view showing how the device shown inFigs. 7, 8 and 9 corrects this defect, and

Figure 8 is a diagrammatic view of my improved film.

A is the camera box; A the front panel havin the opening A through whichthe rays from the lens pass to the film, not shown. A is the rear panelof the box formed with a horizontal slot A". B is the horizontal plateextending across the camera. box and formed with a longitudinal slotindicated at B on each side of which are secured slide guides indicatedat B B. C is a standard'secured to one of the slide guides andsupporting platform C on which is secured the reflector C which-ispreferably a prism shown as clamped on the platform C by a clampingdevice indicated at F, F. D is a slide secured between the slide guidesD D and having secured to its upper surface the plate D broadened out atthe left hand side as indicated at D to form a platform for supportingthe movable prism E clamped upon the portion D by the fastening deviceindicated'at F and F. F is a rack secured to the bottom of the slide D.G is the lens of the camera secured in position to receive the lightrays reflected from the stationary prism E. H and H are spring rollsbetween which extends the flexible screen indicated at H secured to theside edges of the rectangularframe H and runnin over guide rollsindicated at H*, H. H indicate plates extending from the sides of theframe H through the slot A. I indicates a flange extending outward fromthe edges. J is a casing enclosing the part of the camera containing thereflecting prisms. as shown. K is the ordinary shutter actuating shaftdriven by mechanism of the usual kind, not shown. K" is an eccentricsecured to the shaft K; K a shutter also secured to this shaft; K aneccentric ring working on the eccentric K and having the lever arm Kextending from it which is attached to the pin Z adjustably secured inthe crank disc L, piyoted at L, having also secured to it the crank pinsL to which is secured the rod L having forked ends as indicated at L andL having at their ends the teeth indicated at L and L for engaging theratchet wheels to be described. M is a caring secured as shown to theplate 'B and supporting the shaft M to which is secured the gear wheel Sin engagement with the gear S and to the end of which are secured theratchet wheels M and M lying respectively on the same vertical planeswith the teeth L and L of the forked rod L. N is a standard formed withan upwardly extending arm N and a segmental slot N end the link pivotedto and forming part of a toggle joint with another link 0 pivotallyattached to a pin N 5 extending out from the standard N. O is the pivotpin of the toggle which extends over the top of the main portion of thestandard and lies between the outwardly extending 'aws P of a lever Ppivoted at N 3 and having a downwardly extending arm indicated at P. Apin P? extends from the lever P through the slot N and has attached toit the spring indicated at P. Q is an arm extending .downward from theslide D formed as indicated and carrying the stops Q, Q which at theends of the movement of the slide come in contact with and actuate thearm P of the lever P. v

The camera box is supported on a platform R? by means of wheels orrollers indicated at R, R, etc. and is pivoted on said plat form by apivot R which for the best results and construction should coincide withthe hypotenuse of the reflector prism E. A gear wheel S is secured onthe end of the shaft M and engages with a mitre wheel S on the end of athreaded shaft S and a nut S is threaded on this shaft and secured tothe bottom ofthe slide D and from the hottom of this nut extends a rod Shavin rolls.

S, S, on its lower end which extend and engage the sides of a slottedlever T pivoted to the base plate R at T. T indi cates the walls of theslot in the lever T: T a slotted segment at the end of the lever and Ta'binding screw for holding the lever in any angular position to whichit can be adjusted. U, Figs. 6 and 7, indicates the film on whichthepictures are being taken. V, Fig. 8, is a diagrammatic'viewillustrating my new film; the consecutive pictures printed on the filmare indicated at 1 to 8. At V" lates the crank disk F and through itgives a reciprocating motion to the forked rod L which in the conditionand operation shown in Fig. 1 is not supported by the spring 0' so thatthe tooth on its arm L rests into , igainst the toothed edge of theratchet wheel &

. G and the film. As theprlsm approaches its extreme left hand positionthe stop Q carried by the depending arm Q comes in contact with the armP of the lever P pivoted at N and moves the forked end in a clockwisedirection so that one of its forks or fingers P comes in contact withthe pin 0 pushing it toward the right andcausing the toggle made u ofthe articulated levers O and'() to stralghten'out with the'result thatthe spring 0' is moved upward causingthe forked lever L to also moveupward until thetooth L on its arm L comes in contact with the ratchetwheel M so that the motion imparted to the forked lever L transmitsaclockwise motion to this ratchet wheel and to the shaft M with theresult that the prism E has its direction of movement reversed and as itreaches the right hand limit of its movement the stop finger Q comes-incontact with the lever arm P and restores the tog-- gle to the positionshown 'in Fig. l.'

It will be obvious, of course, that the screen curtain H will move withthe prism and the frame H cutting ofi' the admission of light throughany part of the slot A ex- 'and the scene is pictured from a multipleseries of view points all, lying in the same horizontal plane and inwhich the view point changes progressively in one direction through aseries of pictures, then progressively in the opposite direction throughanother series of pictures so that the pictures are formed as shown inFig. 8 and a good stereoscopic effect is produced without flickering orother such abnormal chan es between the views as to produce anunpleasant and unreal effect upon the eye.

Fig. 6 illustrates dia ammatically that the shifting of the movab eprism, when not accompanied by adequate rotative movement of the cameraas a whole, shifts image points i from one side of the film to the'otherside,

and Fig. 7 illustrates that the adequate amount of rotation of theentire camera keeps the image in the same location on the filmnotwithstanding the fact that the View is obtained from a sidewardshifting variable with the increasingor decreasing distance of thecamera to'the view, and the correct adjustment of the rotation requiredin each case is effected by observing the right and left hand limits ofthe plcture when the movable prism is at the pointof its nearestapproach tothe lens, then moving said prism to its opposite limit ofmovement whereupon the guide T is displaced as much as will be foundnecessary to restore to the image the same side limits as were observedin the first instance. The guide T is clamped tight in this position bymeans of the clamp screw T and when so adjusted the subsequent operationof the camera will yield film pictures of stereoscopic quality and ofstationary marginal limits.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is:.

.A moving picture camera pivotally supported on a base plate and havingtwo re. fiectors whereby a view is reflected into the lens, one of saidreflectors being movable in a horizontal plane so as to change the pointof view, in combination with means for shifting said movable reflectorthrough a multiple series of points of rest, correlated means forturning the camera on its pivotal support so as to maintainsubstantially the same angle of incidence between the moving reflectorand the view. and a shutter, operatively connected to the meansaforesaid, for cutting off the light rays from the film during theperiods when the movable reflector is in motion.

LODEWYK J. R. HOLST.

point of view. The required amount of rotatlon is

